When winter chills us, there’s nothing quite as satisfying as pairing grilled cheese with tomato soup. I’ve never thought to look for the sandwich on menus because it’s so basic, I figured most people would make it at home. Then a reader asked about it, and here we are. I found eight versions I liked in three categories. The first category is my favorite, fancy grilled cheese with tasty soups to match. Three restaurants push the flavor to something more interesting and employ fancy kitchen tricks to turn out the best versions of classic grilled cheese sandwiches and soups. I also checked out Tacoma bars known for good sandwiches and a few cafes with economical choices that won’t blow your budget. FANCY VERSIONS The exquisite grilled cheese and tomato soup at Cooks Tavern in the Proctor area. Sue Kidd [email protected] Cook’s Tavern Where: 3201 N. 26th St., Tacoma; 253-327-1777, cookstavern.com This Proctor-area restaurant serves my favorite pairing of grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup. That’s because the kitchen staff uses a few fancy tricks and chef touches. The creamy, thick tomato soup adhered like a velvet tomato drape on the crunchy-edged sandwich constructed for dipping. A shot of Pernod at the end of the soup’s cooking added a licorice note with herbal reinforcement from a finishing drizzle of basil olive oil. That soup also offered a small kick of heat from the addition of chili pepper flakes. The bowl was topped with a disc of fried Parmesan cheese. Nice touch, that. Anthony Hubbard, executive chef for Cooks Tavern and its neighboring restaurant Brewers Row, said the sandwich’s exterior cheese reinforcement gives that exquisite crunch. The bread is slathered with butter and a sprinkle of pecorino on the outside, which created a crisp surface area that kept my sandwich crunchy even after a few soup dunks. A cheesy sandwich crust is my new favorite thing, thanks to Cooks Continue Reading

Not only is he one of the wealthiest people in the world, but he's also a philanthropist, an author and even a knight. Rose Leadem Published 12:30 pm, Thursday, February 22, 2018 Photo: Ullstein Bild | Getty Images Image 1of/1 CaptionClose Image 1 of 1 Bill Gates Bill Gates Photo: Ullstein Bild | Getty Images 23 Weird Things We've Learned About Bill Gates 1 / 1 Back to Gallery With a net worth of more than $86 billion, Bill Gates is known for being one of the richest people in the world. But there’s a lot more you probably don’t know about the Microsoft co-founder. Gates was born in Seattle in 1955 and discovered his passion for technology early on. In school, he met long-time friend and future co-founder Paul Allen. Together, they launched another small-business venture before coming up with the idea for Microsoft. Related: 5 Life Lessons From Bill Gates, One of the Most Influential Philanthropists on Earth Until he realized his desire to pursue computers, Gates had planned to become a lawyer and studied pre-law at Harvard. He eventually dropped out, launched Microsoft and met his employee and future wife, Melinda. Today, Gates is not only a self-made billionaire and tech leader, but he’s also a philanthropist, an author and even a knight. Recommended Video: Now Playing: CEO Jeff Bezos was, briefly, the richest man in the world late last month. Due to a surge in Amazon stock prices, Bezos's net worth rose to over $90 million and surpassed that of Bill Gates. But then Amazon shares retreated, dropping Bezos back into Media: JW Player Check out these 20 surprising facts about Bill Gates. Additional reporting by Nina Zipkin Image credit: Joe McNally | Getty Images 1. Gates developed his first computer software program at 13 years old. After spending a few Continue Reading

Updated July 7, 2017 10:47 AM In Newsday's LI Life section, Long Island couples recall how they met and explain how their love remains strong. Here is a recap of some of their stories from the past few years. (For the full story, click the links in blue.) Gerry and Sandra Bogatz, North Bellmore Gerald "Gerry" and Sandra Bogatz of North Bellmore have been married 65 years. Gerry recalls how it all started: I grew up across the street from my future wife, Sandra Rubin, on East 92nd Street in East Flatbush, Brooklyn. My best friend, Charlie Hudes, and I were invited to a beach party at a friend's house in Neponsit, Queens, located on Rockaway Peninsula. Charlie approached Sandra and her best friend, Bernice Goldstein, and asked them to join us. They accepted the invitation.Early in the evening at the party, Charlie paired off with Sandra and I was with Bernice. A bonfire was built on the beach, and while we were cooking hamburgers and hot dogs and roasting marshmallows, we somehow switched partners. Sandra and I struck up a conversation. By the end of the night, I knew that Sandra would be my soul mate and the love of my life. I proposed to Sandra on Dec. 19, 1949. To save up money for our wedding, she got a job as a bookkeeper and I switched to night classes so I could work during the day.On Nov. 22, 1950, we were married at the DeLuxe Palace in East Flatbush, Brooklyn. In 1958, Sandra and I moved to North Bellmore (we are the last original owners on the block), where we raised our family. In November, we celebrated our 65th anniversary with a family dinner at our favorite restaurant, The Carltun in Eisenhower Park in East Meadow.-- With Virginia Dunleavy Rochelle and Ron Alexenburg of Woodbury Rochelle and Ron Alexenburg of Woodbury fell in love sight unseen. Ron recalls their courtship: In September 1964, I met Rochelle Prusher on the telephone. Over the next two months we spoke almost daily at work and began calling each other at home. We hadn't met in Continue Reading

POUGHKEEPSIE — Snow fell hard on the Hudson as Marist College’s Red Foxes huddled inside Shadows, a chic restaurant perched on a cliff 40 feet above the river’s east bank. Brian Giorgis, the balding, bespectacled coach of the women’s basketball team, leaned back on a barstool. He held a microphone in his hands; a spotlight shone down on his heavyset frame. It was March 18, 2013, 10 minutes before his team was to learn its assignment for the NCAA Tournament. A radio host from Rock 93.3 FM asked Giorgis, a lifelong bachelor, about balance and basketball in front of a barful of red-clad boosters. “On Christmas Day, will I watch film?” he said. “Yes, but not all day.” Giorgis laughed; glasses clinked. A teetotaler known to down Diet Cokes as early as 5 a.m., Giorgis looked at the crowd. He outlined the demands of maintaining a top midmajor program, accruing a .778 winning percentage over the last 11 winters, winning 10 consecutive conference titles, collecting five NCAA Tournament victories and outdrawing 7 of 10 men’s teams in the MAAC. He spared the supporters the specifics of his side obsession, declining to mention the memorabilia shrine dedicated to Derek Jeter in his bedroom or the emails from eBay that ping on his phone when he gets outbid by a competitor. Balance, to Giorgis, is keeping a photo of himself holding a T-206 Honus Wagner card on the same office shelf with a glass slipper that a fan gifted him to celebrate a Cinderella run to the Sweet 16 in 2007. He daydreams about claiming another. “It’s been a nice fairy tale,” he said. Few could have predicted the path Giorgis would forge in becoming the prince of Poughkeepsie. He first garnered attention at Our Lady of Lourdes High as the only coach in New York history to lead teams to the state semifinals in four sports – baseball, softball, girls basketball and volleyball. Moving across town and up the coaching ranks, he Continue Reading